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Chapter 26
AMERICA, AMERICA!
Foreboding days lay
ahead. The Turkish army was pushing westward. The presence of the Greek army
in Anatolia was shriveling. People wanted to believe the contrary, but
desolate signs were everywhere. What later came to be known in the annals of
Greek history as ‘The Great Catastrophe’ was unfolding. A new
move was on Aneta’s and Anastasia’s agenda, this time to the land of golden
opportunities. Millions of expelled and dispossessed people from everywhere
found a new home for themselves in America. In 1921, a year before the
final defeat of the Greek army, the two women left Anatolia for good. The
land of Aneta’s birth and marriage, followed by untold suffering, was left
behind. The remains of her dear husband were lying in an unmarked grave
anticipating the glorious resurrection day.
After a brief
voyage from Izmir to Piraeus, Aneta had a big surprise when she arrived in
Athens. Her long search for her brother-in-law in America with whom she had
no contact was finally rewarded. A cousin traced his whereabouts in the
United States and related to him all the happenings of the past years. Of
course, he had no knowledge of the execution of his brother in Anatolia, or
of the details which had brought grief to millions of people. His heart was
deeply touched and he said, “I must bring my mother and sister-in-law to
America.” He immediately mailed a check for six hundred dollars, along with
an invitation to the women. Aneta’s father in Patras who had been greatly
concerned for his daughter was overjoyed. Also Haralambos’ wish before his
death for her not to continue to live in Turkey was being fulfilled. There
were certain formalities to attend to; while in Athens she took care of
everything at the American Embassy. The ship was to sail from Patras. In
August 1921 they boarded Cunard Lines’ S/S Passonia and waved their final
farewell to Greece. This small country had become a haven to numerous
refugees who had fled Turkey. The women were in the company of a few
friends, all traveling to New York. The weather was very beautiful so they
enjoyed the voyage immensely.
After twenty-one
days, the Statue of Liberty came into view. On it was inscribed a special
welcome to all who came to start a new life. The whole scene before her was
a balm to Aneta’s bereaved soul. At the time of their arrival, the influx of
refugees was at its height. In those days, anyone with an invitation from a
relative was accepted into the country. The brother-in-law, Yacovos (James),
was there to greet them. Their joy was indescribable, as was the case of
all other weary passengers upon meeting their loved ones. Yacovos
immediately informed them that there was a new rule that each immigrant had
to spend an unspecified time in Ellis Island for thorough screening and
examination. Only American citizens returning from Europe would be let into
the country without waiting. He decided to hire a lawyer for them to help
expedite their case. Life on Ellis Island in New York Harbor made a grim,
but colorful picture as people from every part of Europe and the Middle East
converged on the New World. A vast variety of languages and diversity of
practices distinguished this small piece of land from any other place in the
world.
The long years
of poverty, suffering and endless agonies had left their deep imprint on
faces. Apprehension due to the uprooting from home and country was evident
in people’s expressions. Aneta was deeply dismayed when she saw a large
number of refugees sent back because of some health condition or lack of
invitation and visa. Having been with so many refugees during and after the
war, the scene evoked deep emotions as she pondered the future of those
destitute people.
Aneta thought,
“What better place could there be than here, to show the love and compassion
of Christ?” Deep in her heart she determined to stay there for some time
with her mother-in-law in order to offer service for Jesus. But the
officials entertained no tender spot in their hearts for this sort of
request. They did not even want to hear it. “Lady,” said one of them, “when
your turn comes, you move out of here. We’re not interested in that sort of
business.” The rule was that the passengers of each ship would be let in
after the previous ship’s passengers had been processed. It happened that
the S/S Passonia docked just five minutes after a huge ship carrying many
passengers came into port. The Passonia passengers were escorted into a
large hall with an adjoining dining room. There were all sorts of food, but
people didn’t feel much like eating. Then Aneta saw something which
appalled her. The uneaten food on the table was dumped overboard into the
sea. Like a flash, her mind fled back to the starving refugees during the
Armenian deportation.
A guide took the
group to a huge washroom with hot and cold running water. They had the
luxury of taking showers before they rested for the night. Their so-called
sleeping room was furnished with iron bunk beds without blankets or
pillows. As they entered this room each person was given a set of blankets,
one to lie on and the other to cover him/herself. Then the guard locked
them in for the night. As if in a contest, forty-five people ran to grab
the upper bunks. For a whole month this was a kind of ‘home’ for these
people. The law stated that all doctors, nurses, teachers, priests and
ministers were not compelled to stay on Ellis Island; they could leave
immediately.
In the meantime,
Yacovos was visiting them regularly. He was not happy with the conditions
there, so he reported the situation to different newspapers. This was the
beginning of a general concern to change the setup. European countries sent
representatives to investigate. Following all this publicity, the laws were
gradually relaxed and Ellis Island was no longer considered a place of
strict confinement for incoming refugees. This all happened before the Greek
catastrophe in Smyrna, when thousands of refugees poured into America.
During their month-long stay, Aneta distributed portions of Scriptures in
several languages which she had brought with her. She had already given out
Scriptures to passengers on the transatlantic voyage. She was able to
strike up conversations with folks who spoke one of the three languages she
knew. People who had little to occupy themselves with listened respectfully.
One of these was a young Greek man by the name of Constantine George, quite
athletic in appearance, a newcomer from Greece. His aim was to make a
fortune in the United States. He was relating to whoever would listen his
spectacular dreams for the brilliant life he had in mind for himself. Aneta
gave him a Gospel of Luke in Greek. He had never seen the Scriptures until
then. He listened to Aneta’s witness, but before long he left the island,
getting lost in the crowd of those eager to seek their fortune in their new
country.
Two years later,
Aneta met this vibrant young man in Boston. He had gone into confectionary
business with good success. As soon as he saw Aneta, he said, “You’re the
woman who gave me that Gospel of Luke. I want you to know that I read it
with great interest. After I came to Boston the Russelites found me and
began influencing me. I got my first Bible from them. But their teaching did
not touch my heart so I soon disowned them. Later, I met Paul Yphantis who
headed up a Greek mission. He led me to Christ.” Constantine George
eventually became an elder in the Greek Evangelical Church of Boston. He was
always ready to give a lively witness to the people he daily came in contact
with. He also made it a point to channel part of his profits to Christian
workers in Greece.
Aneta left Ellis
Island a very sick woman with a high fever. She and Anastasia traveled to
Boston by train where Yacovos and his American wife met them at the station
and took them home. Aneta was immediately put to bed, suffering from a
terrible earache. When the doctor came he told her that it was caused by an
abscess. After a few days of treatment, she was on the road to recovery.
Her sister-in-law was very kind to these two needy women.
As soon as she
recovered Aneta’s interest switched to finding Armenian newcomers. These
refugees were remnants of decimated Armenian families. They knew no English;
most of them didn’t even speak their own Armenian. The only language they
knew was Turkish, so ministering to them in a language they could understand
was a delightful experience for Aneta − and for them! Soon a hall in the
heart of Boston was acquired for their meetings. Aneta and her
mother-in-law were able to rent a room nearby. Among the refugees, Aneta
met many old friends from Aintab. Her ministry advanced encouragingly.
Once she was invited by the Armenians in Philadelphia to minister to them,
too, and another time to New York. Interestingly, the invitation from New
York was from a man who happened to have been one of the last students from
the Bible school in Aintab. He became like a son to Aneta in her new
country.
While she was
preparing to leave for New York, she was offered a job at the Social
Services Department in Boston. Because of her education and knowledge of
languages, her prospective employers were eager to utilize her services.
However this offer had to wait until her return. |
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